Battle of Vatili

The Battle of Vatili (early January 1799) was a battle of the Egyptian Campaign of the French Revolutionary Wars. Throughout late 1798, Admiral Charlot Germain's French invasion fleet of two ships dodged British admiral Horatio Nelson's larger Royal Navy fleet and managed to land 1,408 troops under Jean-Baptiste Kleber in southern Cyprus, although the French fleet was destroyed in battle shortly after. Kleber's army advanced inland, making camp between the capital of Nicosia and the port of Famagusta. An army of 1,425 British troops under Winston Birchall was sent from Nicosia to attack the French, and the two sides met in battle at Vatili. The French formed firing positions that could fire on British regiments from multiple sides, allowing for them to inflict heavy losses on the British regiments as they advanced into battle. Scores of British troops were killed before they could even take up their own firing positions, and the French cavalry would charge the British regiments as they wavered, massacring them. The British army was utterly routed during the battle, and it lost 1,281 troops, while the French lost a mere 358 troops. The battle, which was expected to be an easy British victory, allowed for the French to capture Nicosia three weeks later.